BERLIN • Inter Milan are the next big European football club to confirm their participation in the International Champions Cup (ICC) which Singapore will host in July.

The Italian Serie A giants will face off with German Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich on July 27 at the National Stadium.

Earlier this month, sources told The Straits Times that runaway English Premier League leaders Chelsea were in negotiations with organisers to play here.

The confirmation means fans in Singapore can look forward to seeing three top European teams in action at the ICC - an annual club competition featuring big-name European clubs in pre-season friendly matches around the world.

Real Madrid, Barcelona, Liverpool and Manchester United were among the teams involved last year, with games being held in Australia, China, the United States and across Europe.

Bayern were the first club to confirm their attendance in Singapore.

Carlo Ancelotti's side will play Arsenal on July 19 in Shanghai and AC Milan on July 22 in Shenzhen, before heading to the Republic, where they will likely meet Chelsea on July 25 and Inter on July 27.

"It's a very important element in our international brand strategy, FC Bayern now have 135 million fans in China and more and more fans in South-east Asia," Joerg Wacker, head of internationalisation and strategy for Bayern, said on the club's website.

Bayern, bidding for their fifth consecutive Bundesliga title this season, also visited the United States last year for a series of friendly matches.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on March 15, 2017, with the headline 'Inter join Bayern, Chelsea at ICC S'pore'. Print Edition | Subscribe

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